Food52 “Genius Recipes”

To be sure, it wasn’t perfect. But then again, no cookbook is. In the many years we’ve been doing this blog, we’ve never found a cookbook that was faultless in every respect. We’ve had several that we’ve deemed special enough for our high-rotation cookbook shelves, but there still hasn’t been one where we loved every recipe.

I’m not sure that such a cookbook exists, but we keep trying to find it, which is why this blog persists month after month.

Even though this cookbook wasn’t perfect, but it definitely would be one of my Desert Island Cookbooks– not that such a thing exists, but if it did, I would put it on my list. There were enough fantastic recipes that I would want to make over and over again when stranded on a desert island that I think it would be worth taking.

I’ve already made the salt-baked salmon again, and I see it in regular rotation for Fish Friday. The three-ingredient tomato sauce was a success, and I can see myself making that regularly. The hummus was delicious, and now that a friendly reader told me I can freeze the leftovers, I can see making it again soon. We all swooned over the chocolate cake, and it lasted in the house less than a day (which is definitely a sign).

Paging through the cookbook, I found great comfort in the fact that lots of the “Genius Recipes” originated from books we’ve featured here, like “Jerusalem” and “The Moro Cookbook”, but also cookbooks that I love unconditionally, like The Silver Palate and Julia Child.

No, I didn’t love everything. The roasted butternut squash salad was a disappointment, the meatballs didn’t stack up against our absolute favourite from Polpo, and the chocolate mousse wasn’t universally loved by my family. Kirstin had a smoky disaster from the roast chicken, and would’t be making that again either.

Despite this, there were more successes than failures, and I can see myself continuing to try out this cookbook after May is over. Overall, it was a delicious month.

With only two days left in May, I thought it might be useful to do a roundup of four dishes I’ve done out of “Food52 Genius Recipes.” I’m going to write about them in the order of preference.

Grilled Cheese [Sorry. No picture.]

We had this twice over the course of the month and both times the sandwiches were eaten before I could take a picture. I suppose that tells you everything you need to know. While I’m still not sure you need a proper recipe for a grilled cheese, the “Genius” aspect of this was to spread mayonnaise on the outside of the bread, rather than the traditional butter. By doing it this way, there’s less risk of burning the bread. I’m not sure how this method is a genius method over my usual way of making grilled cheese, which is to spread Lurpak spreadable butter on the outside of the bread. I might have to make grilled cheese again, with one sandwich using the Genius method and the other to use my own and see what works better. Either way, grilled cheese is ALWAYS a win for lunch.

Would I make it again? Obviously yes, though I’m still not sure about the method.

This is simple personified. In fact, I made it even simpler by buying a basmati rice and wild rice mixture and using that. Score one for the home team. Aside from the rice, the other ingredients are red onion, celery and parsley, and the dressing is a mixture of oils with blasamic vinegar and dijon mustard. Like I said, simple personified. I made it one night to go with our barbeque meal. I quickly demolished the leftovers the next day for lunch, when they were even tastier. Some times simple really is better.

Unfortunately, this recipe isn’t posted on Food52 for some reason, so you can’t click through this sentence to see it yourself.

Basic Hummus [Sorry. No picture.]

This recipe is out of one of my favourite cookbooks, “Jerusalem”, which we reviewed on this site in May 2014. I already knew what I was getting into when I made it again. Forewarned is forearmed: This is a TOTAL faff to make. I’m still undecided as to whether the faff is worth it. I suppose it is, but only just. It takes a full 24 hours of planning and patience, given that you have to soak the chick peas overnight, and then there’s multiple steps to make it happen. While the hummus was delicious, it does take a fair amount of dedication. Also you should know that you end up with a vat of hummus. Okay, maybe it’s not a vat, but it felt like it, given that the bowl I filled was about 10 times the size of the usual hummus container I buy at our local supermarket. After three days, we’re still trying to finish the hummus and we’re not even close yet.

Would I make it again? Maybe for a party, when I could be assured that we would eat through it all. Otherwise, maybe I’ll try it again but make only half of it. I’ve made it before and I’ll make it again, but every time I ask myself, “Do I really want to dedicate the time to getting this finished?” Some times the answer to that is yes. Some times, the answer is no.

Usually I am a sucker for roasted butternut squash, so I approached this recipe with a fair amount of enthusiasm. Listen, I love roasted butternut squash so much that I made the Jerusalem version for our Christmas lunch, even though it didn’t really go with the rest of the dishes (though my vegan friend Anne and I HOOVERED it up and there were no leftovers.)

But this one just didn’t stack up, unfortunately. It just wasn’t as good as the Jerusalem recipe, which I know and love ardently. Given that the rest of the family is less enthused about the vegetable [read: They don’t really like it] this went over like a lead balloon.

I’ve loved many of the recipes I’ve made from “Genius Recipes” this month, but I approached this one with a fair amount of trepidation. I already have a Genius Recipe for tomato sauce and meatballs– from Polpo (first reviewed here), which everyone loves very much. Why mess with success?

I was right to be sceptical.

As this is a food blog, let’s review this particular dish by using a Praise Sandwich. For those among you who are unfamiliar with this term, it means you start with the compliments, put the criticism in the middle, and then finish with a compliment. Apparently using this method is supposed to make hearing criticism easier to stomach. Or something.

Everyone agreed that the tomato sauce was delicious. In fact, I made it again earlier this week when I needed some tomato sauce for chicken parm night. (It is Revision Week here, ahead of internal exams next week, so it’s been a week full of our favourites, and chicken parm is one of them.)

The tomato sauce differs from the Polpo version in that you only used canned tomatoes for this one– Polpo uses a mix of fresh and canned– and also it is a bit quicker to make– 45 minutes compared to 90 minutes for Polpo. But the key difference is the inclusion of a fair amount of butter, as well as an onion that you cook whole with the tomatoes, but then take out before using the sauce. I wasn’t sure about the butter, as that seemed an odd addition to a basic tomato sauce. But what the butter did in the end was add a dairy creaminess, not unlike what you’d have if you’d added cheese.

Half of the family liked this tomato sauce better than the Polpo version, the other half disagreed, preferring the Polpo tomato sauce. This was definitely a split decision.

Where we were all unanimous, however, was in our universal dislike of the meatballs. They weren’t bad, they just weren’t as gloriously delicious as the Polpo version we have come to know and love. I’ve made them countless times since I first tried them in March 2013, and they’ve been a winner. Every time. You’ve got to like those odds.

So in short, a mixed decision. I definitely would make the tomato sauce again (particularly when I don’t have enough time, or I’m in a holiday house, where access to a variety of ingredients is limited) but I won’t make these meatballs again.

But frankly, I’m being picky. In our family, you can never go wrong with spaghetti and meatballs for dinner.

Maureen: Your wish is my command. Well, not really, but it’s a nice thing to say. It makes me feel like Aladdin. This is yet another recipe from a cookbook I already have. This is a Nigella Lawson recipe from her “How to be a Domestic Goddess” cookbook, which I’ve loved for years, though I can’t remember if I’ve ever made this particular cake.

[Quiet descends over the table as everyone is too busy enjoying their cake to talk.]

Maureen: Agreed. It’s like a cross between a brownie and a cake, and it works. I don’t even care that it has completely collapsed in the middle. It’s supposed to, apparently. Some people have even taken to calling this, “Ugly Chocolate Cake.” I can see what they mean. Should I make this again?

Maureen: I know. I can’t believe we’re having chicken again after a month of having nothing BUT chicken, but here we are.

Andrew (15): This smells great.

Maureen: You can’t go wrong with olive oil and lemon, if you ask me. What do you think?

Tim: This is good.

Maureen: I agree. It’s not setting the world on fire with its creativity, but it’s delicious. The thing I love most about it is it’s so simple and yet so yummy. All I had to do was fry them on a low heat for about 40 minutes, while I could get on with making the side dishes.

Nicholas: I like it.

Andrew: Me too.

Maureen: I also like how the lemon rind becomes a little bit crispy, so you end up biting into a small morsel of deliciousness. Yum. I will definitely be making this again.